


Circumstantial Evidence

by enigmaticblue



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-02
Updated: 2013-07-02
Packaged: 2017-12-17 11:46:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/867173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enigmaticblue/pseuds/enigmaticblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One by one, the Avengers find out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Circumstantial Evidence

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thomasina75](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thomasina75/gifts).



> Vague spoilers for Iron Man 3, but nothing earth shattering.

**Natasha**

 

Natasha is the first to find out, long before anyone moves into the Tower, and even before Tony issues the invitation.

 

She never does tell anyone _how_ she found out. When Clint asks (or when Steve demands to know whether she’d been aware of Bruce and Tony’s intimate relationship because he’s been traumatized by seeing something he can’t unsee), she just raises an eyebrow and looks superior.

 

There are times when it’s useful for her teammates to believe she’s capable of reading minds, or close enough.

 

What really happens is this: the Avengers are in a long briefing on current threats, with Tony sitting next to Steve at one end, and Bruce next to Natasha on the other end. (After the last meeting, when Tony had whispered to Bruce constantly, Fury had insisted that they be separated, and Steve was elected to keep Tony under control with a sharp elbow and disappointed frown.)

 

Natasha knows Tony is playing with his phone under the table, but he’s quiet, so Steve is ignoring him.

 

She gets up to get a cup of coffee—it really _is_ a boring meeting—and spots Bruce typing out a text message on his Stark Phone. The phone is balanced on the leg closest to Natasha, and she’s curious, so when she sits back down, she angles her chair so she can see the screen.

 

It lights up just as Natasha settles into her chair, and she sneaks a peek under the guise of taking a sip of coffee.

 

_I could crawl under the table and suck you off._

 

Natasha glances at Bruce, and he looks completely placid as he types out a response. He doesn’t even blush.

 

_Later. I might even let you fuck me. Or better yet, I’ll fuck you while you’re bent over the lab bench._

 

Her suspicion as to who’s texting is confirmed when Tony chokes on his own spit, and Steve obligingly pounds him on the back.

 

“You okay?” Steve asks as Tony coughs.

 

“Fine,” Tony manages, and one corner of Bruce’s mouth curls up.

 

And that’s how Natasha finds out that Tony and Bruce are sleeping together—not that she’ll ever tell anybody.

 

**Clint**

 

When Tony invites everybody to live in the Tower, Clint is a little surprised that Natasha agrees almost immediately.  “I didn’t think you’d want to live under the same roof as the Hulk,” he says when he hears the news.

 

Natasha shrugs. “Tony says our floor would be reinforced and Hulk-proof, and we’re there often enough. I’m used to the idea.”

 

Clint scratches the back of his head. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to be close to the rest of the team. We end up at the Tower half the time anyway.”

 

“It does seem more efficient,” Natasha agrees.

 

Clint shrugs. “Well, I guess I’m in then.”

 

Living in the Tower definitely has its perks, as Clint discovers when he moves in a week later. The fridge refills on its own, his laundry gets done without Clint having to lift a finger, and Tony has a seemingly endless supply of really good booze. In fact, after Jarvis discovers Clint’s favorite kind of beer, there’s always a six-pack in the fridge.

 

Plus, Clint has easy access to Stark and Banner, who seem to be settling into a sort of mad scientist partnership that’s as friendly as it is competitive, which means Clint has no problem asking for new arrows.

 

“I mean, I was _this_ close to missing the anchor point,” Clint exclaims one day after a long SHIELD mission that had almost ended with him as a pancake on the sidewalk. “There’s a little wobble in my grappling arrow, and when the wind picks up, I can’t guarantee its placement.”

 

“I thought R&D at SHIELD was pretty good,” Banner says, sipping his tea.

 

Clint shrugs. “It’s fine, but they’ve got other things that are more important.”

 

“You not becoming road kill _is_ important,” Stark replies, which is exactly what Clint had hoped he would say. “Come on. Grab your stuff and bring it down to the lab. Brucie, you coming?”

 

Banner rolls his eyes good-naturedly. “Yes, I’m coming.”

 

Tony leers at him in response.

 

“Sometimes I think you’re actually 12,” Banner observes, but he’s smirking.

 

Clint narrows his eyes, wondering if he’s reading the subtext correctly, but then he dismisses it. Stark flirts with anything that moves, and Banner puts up with Stark. He’s about the only one who seems to have made it a lifestyle choice, rather than treating it as a hazard of the job.

 

“I’ll just grab my stuff,” Clint replies.

 

Stark is waiting for him by the time Clint enters the lab, although Banner isn’t there yet.

 

“So, where’s this arrow?” Stark asks.

 

Clint pulls the offending arrow out of his quiver and holds it out. Stark holds up his hands. “Just set it on the bench there.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“He doesn’t like being handed things,” Banner supplies as he enters the lab. “It’s a quirk. You get used to it.”

 

Clint shrugs, knowing by now that Stark is definitely one of those eccentric billionaires, and places the arrow on the lab bench.

 

Stark studies it for a minute or two. “We can definitely improve on the design. Bruce, what do you think?”

 

Banner leans over Stark’s shoulder, his face very close to Stark’s, and his hand on Stark’s lower back. “Shouldn’t be a problem. What about the rest of your arrows, Clint? Any other problems?”

 

Clint hands over his quiver, and quickly gives them the rundown of each arrow, and what it does.

 

“No tranq arrow?” Banner asks.

 

Stark frowns. “You’re not on about that again, are you?”

 

“It’s a basic precaution, Tony,” Banner says, his tone patient. “If the Other Guy gets out of hand—”

 

“I’ll talk him down,” Stark says, cutting him off. “I know how to handle him. You.” He grins. “I definitely know how to handle _you_.”

 

Clint watches them, realizing that they seem to have forgotten his presence entirely.

 

Banner sighs, as though this is an old argument he doesn’t really want to have. “There are other things and people who might need to be tranqed.”

 

“Fair enough,” Tony agrees. “What else, Barton? Is there anything you really want and don’t think you can have?”

 

“Nets are handy,” Clint says. “Anything that would provide a nonlethal means of taking someone down, that sort of thing.”

 

Banner pulls out one arrow. “What’s the force on your explosive arrows?”

 

Clint shrugs. “It packs a punch, about the equivalent of a block of C4.”

 

“We can do better,” Stark declares. “Let me see that.”

 

Banner hands him the arrow, and Stark takes it without comment.

 

And Clint blinks as the pieces slot into place.

 

They’re arguing over the best way to fit more explosives onto an arrowhead without sacrificing weight when Clint quietly excuses himself. He immediately goes to locate Natasha, who is curled up on the couch in her living quarters, reading a book.

 

“Did you know?” Clint asks.

 

“About what?” she replies, without looking up.

 

“About our resident mad scientists sleeping together.”

 

Natasha hums an absentminded affirmative.

 

“How did you find out?” Clint asks, because while he’s not surprised that she knows, they’ve been keeping it pretty well under wraps.

 

Natasha finally looks up and lifts one perfectly arched eyebrow, which means she wants him to think she can read their minds.

 

Clint drops down next to her. “Fine. How long have you known?”

 

She smiles. “Weeks.”

 

And that’s all she’ll say on the matter.

 

**Coulson**

 

Phil Coulson probably wouldn’t have found out about Stark and Banner’s extracurricular activities, but he winds up running a joint operation between his team and the Avengers.

 

They had tracked down a scientist in Houston who’s employing those with special skills to rob banks and run drugs in a get-rich-quick scheme that seems to be working. Phil probably could have handled it himself, but the scientist—calling himself “the Fixer”—had been a little too good at enhancing already existing abilities, which means there’s at least a dozen enhanced bad guys who all decide to attempt world domination at the same time.

 

Phil makes the call to Fury, and is grateful that the Avengers are already assembled—it’s one of the nice perks about them all living at the Tower.

 

He definitely does _not_ let on how excited he is to be working with the team he helped put together.

 

The Avengers—minus Thor, who’s still on Asgard—work fairly well together these days, and somewhere in the back of Phil’s head, he thinks about how very incredible it is to listen to his childhood hero call out orders.

 

Phil sends his team out to do cleanup, and connects with Captain Rogers to check in. “How is it looking?” he asks.

 

“Everybody is either in custody or dead,” Rogers reports.

 

“Casualties?” Phil asks.

 

“A few civilians,” Rogers replies, sounding regretful. “I’ve heard from Agents Barton and Romanoff, and Stark said he was going to find Banner.”

 

Phil nods. “Very well. Thank you.”

 

He steps out of the van they’d been using as a command center, and pauses when he sees Iron Man standing there. “I thought you were looking for Dr. Banner,” he comments.

 

There’s no response, and no movement, and Phil realizes that suit is empty, which means that Stark is out there without any kind of protection, which could prove dangerous if Stark runs up against the Hulk.

 

Phil moves quickly, noting the medics working on the injured, the buildings with windows blown out or pieces missing. They’re in the heart of the business district, and Phil knows it’s never going to be quite the same.

 

The heat causes his shirt to stick to his back, but he resists the urge to take off his jacket, since that will fly in the face of his carefully cultivated reputation of total unflappability.

 

He spots the Hulk at the edge of the destruction, still green, although he isn’t smashing anything. Stark is standing right next to him, apparently disregarding the danger.

 

Phil edges closer, careful not to make any sudden movements that would bring him to the Hulk’s attention.

 

“…not that I mind, it’s just that the Quinjet probably isn’t big enough for you,” Stark is saying, talking a mile a minute. “But if you want to travel back to the Tower on your own steam, that’s cool, totally up to you. I’m just saying that you might be more comfortable if you let Bruce come back.”

 

“Metal Man talks too much,” Hulk says, and Phil is impressed. He hadn’t thought the Hulk could form complete sentences.

 

Stark shrugs. “You’re right, but it’s kind of my thing. You like it.”

 

Hulk grunts.

 

“Bruce likes it, too. Hey, what do you think of me convincing Bruce to let you out to play sometime when nobody’s shooting at you? I’ll find something for you to smash, or you can uproot trees or something. It’ll be fun.”

 

Hulk bares his teeth, and Phil realizes that it’s his version of a grin. “Yes.”

 

“Okay, it’s a deal,” Stark says. “Come on, Big Guy. You smashed all the bad guys for now. You did good.”

 

That seems to do the trick, and the Hulk begins to shrink, green giving way to pale skin, and then it’s just Banner sitting there, his head hanging between his knees.

 

“There you are,” Stark says with a grin. “I brought you some clothes.”

 

“…thanks.” Banner doesn’t move immediately, and Stark squats down next to him. “Collateral damage?”

 

“Bad guys and property damage,” Stark assures him. “The Hulk was fairly restrained.”

 

Banner snorts. “I doubt that.”

 

“Here.” Stark holds out a bundle of clothing. “Unless you want to go naked, which is a valid choice, by the way. I approve.”

 

Banner takes the pants, rolling his eyes. “You seem to be hung up on me being naked.”

 

“It’s a good look for you,” Stark replies, grinning unrepentantly. “You should be naked more often.”

 

“I’m naked enough already,” Banner objects, and slowly drags on the clothes, his movements a little stiff.

 

Once he’s dressed, Stark says, “Hey, come here,” and wraps an arm around Banner’s shoulders, pressing his lips to Banner’s temple. “You did good today.”

 

And when Banner tilts his head to meet Stark’s lips with his own, Phil makes a silent retreat.

 

The rest of the Avengers are waiting by the command center, and Rogers is eyeing the empty suit with distaste. “I’m just saying it’s weird,” he says. Then he catches sight of Phil. “Oh, hey, Agent Coulson. Did you find Bruce and Tony?”

 

“Stark was talking Banner down,” Phil replies. “Does he always do that?”

 

“Hulk likes Iron Man,” Barton intones in a deep voice, and cracks a smile.

 

Natasha lets out a little snort, indicating that she’s truly amused, and Rogers shakes his head. “God knows why,” he says a little wryly.

 

“I think the Hulk likes the same people Bruce likes,” Natasha says.

 

Phil gives her a look and quirks an eyebrow. She hitches a shoulder in silent confirmation.

 

“Well, I guess Bruce and Tony _are_ pretty friendly,” Rogers agrees.

 

Barton looks as though he’s suppressing laughter, and Natasha’s face is carefully blank in that way she has when she knows something and doesn’t want to let on.

 

Phil kind of wishes he could be a fly on the wall when Rogers finds out just how friendly Stark and Banner are, but he has his own team to get back to.

 

He suspects it’s going to be interesting.

 

**Steve**

 

Steve glares down at his Stark Phone’s blank screen. He’s getting the hang of using technology, but there are times when it still defeats him.

 

He has a few choices when it comes to advice on how to fix it, but he opts for finding Bruce, since Bruce is the one least likely to make fun of Steve for breaking his phone yet again.

 

The door to Bruce’s lab slides open, and Steve calls out, “Bruce? Could you—”

 

He stops cold, seeing Bruce leaning against his lab bench, his pants undone and around his ankles, and Tony on his knees in front of him, and—

 

Steve claps a hand over his eyes and backs out of the room, knowing that it’s probably too late to pretend he hadn’t seen them.

 

He makes a beeline for his room and runs right into Natasha.

 

“Sorry,” he mutters.

 

“Steve? Are you okay?” she asks, putting a hand on his arm to steady him.

 

Steve hesitates. “Yes. No. I—did you know?” he asks plaintively.

 

She begins to steer him toward the elevator. “Know what?”

 

“About Bruce and Tony!” Steve says, keeping his voice low.

 

Natasha nods. “Of course.”

 

“How long?” Steve asks as she hit the button for the Penthouse.

 

“Before we moved into the Tower,” Natasha admits, sounding completely unconcerned.

 

“How did you know?”

 

Natasha raises an eyebrow and just looks superior. Times like this, Steve thinks she might actually be psychic. “How did you find out?” she deflects, nudging him out of the elevator and towards the couch.

 

“Bruce was—Tony was—” Steve can’t actually say the words, not in front of Natasha, even if he knows she’s heard much worse.

 

Natasha hums. “Well, that should teach them to lock the door.”

 

Steve sits down on the couch heavily. “It doesn’t bother you?”

 

“Why should it?” she asks. “Bruce hasn’t had an incident in months, and Tony is much less annoying when he’s in a stable relationship. If they make each other happy, that’s all that matters. Does it bother _you_?”

 

Steve hesitates. “What happens if they fight?” he asks, knowing that it’s a weak response.

 

Natasha looks unimpressed. “What makes you think they haven’t already?”

 

Steve has to concede the point.

 

The elevator door opens, and Bruce steps out, greeting them with a rueful smile. “Sorry about that. I thought Tony had locked the door, and Tony thought _I_ had locked the door…”

 

Steve can’t quite meet his eyes. “No problem,” he manages to choke out.

 

Bruce sits down on the other couch. “Is it a problem, Steve?” he asks gently.

 

Steve glances up, and Bruce’s expression is wry and understanding, and completely nonjudgmental.

 

Not for the first time, Steve realizes how much older Bruce is, if you discount the years Steve spent on ice.

 

And really, it’s just Bruce and Tony; they’re still his teammates. Nothing about that has changed.

 

Steve manages to meet Bruce’s gaze. “It’s not the first time I’ve walked in on something like that,” he admits. “And—yeah. It’s fine, it’s just not something I wanted to see.”

 

Bruce chuckles. “I understand. We’ll be more careful in the future.”

 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Steve asks. “Did you think I’d be a jerk about it?”

 

Bruce shrugs. “We haven’t really _told_ anybody, at first because we weren’t sure it was going anywhere, and then because—it never came up.”

 

Steve nods. “I get that.”

 

“So, what did you need?” Bruce asks.

 

Steve holds out his phone. “I think I broke it again.”

 

Natasha laughs at him, as he suspected she would, but Bruce just takes the phone. “Let’s see what we can figure out.”

 

**Thor**

 

Thor’s duties on Asgard keep him longer than he’d planned, but coming back to Midgard feels much like coming home. He first checks in with Jane, and only then does he call his teammates at the Tower. “I have returned to Midgard,” he says to Jarvis, who is apparently the only one present and able to answer. “And I will be at the Tower in three days.”

 

“Your rooms will be ready for you when you arrive,” Jarvis replies. “Welcome back, sir.”

 

Thor is glad to see Jane, and he’s grateful that she’s willing to wait for him during those times when he must be away, but he feels as though he doesn’t have a place in her life the way he does at the Tower.

 

There, Thor is valued for _what_ he is as much as _who_ he is, and that is fulfilling in a way Thor doesn’t always find here.

 

When he lands on the helipad of the Tower, he is pleased to see that his friends are present, sitting around the spacious living area, a stack of pizza boxes on the central table.

 

“Thor!” Steve says with a broad smile. “It’s good to have you back.”

 

The others echo the welcome, and Thor smiles. “It is good to be among my friends again,” Thor says.

 

Tony waves at the pizza boxes. “Welcome home. Grab a slice. Can I get you a beer?”

 

“That would be most welcome,” Thor admits.

 

“I’ll get it,” Bruce says, using Tony’s shoulder to push himself up. “Any preference?”

 

“None,” Thor replies, knowing that all of Tony’s alcohol is pleasant tasting.

 

The easy greeting from his friends sets Thor at ease, and he sits, taking a slice and folding it in half. “My friends,” he says with a smile. “What news?”

 

They all look at each other. “We saved the world a couple of times,” Clint offers. “But otherwise, it’s pretty much the same old.”

 

Bruce glances at Tony, handing Thor his beer, and then he says mildly. “And Tony and I are dating. We figured we’d probably better tell you since the rest of the team knows.”

 

Thor grins and slaps Bruce on the back, the beer sloshing out of the bottle and dripping down his hand onto the floor. Thor would smash the bottle in celebration, but he’s found that is often frowned upon.

 

“I am glad you have found happiness in each other! Thank you for sharing this news with me,” Thor says warmly, glad for his friends.

 

Bruce hitches a shoulder. “We have. Found happiness, that is,” he confirms. “Thanks, Thor. It’s good to have you back.”

 

“Definitely,” Tony says. “Tell us what’s going on with Asgard. You were gone longer than expected.”

 

And Thor begins to tell them of his time on Asgard, setting aside the joyous news. If his friends are content, then so is he.

 

**Bruce**

 

Tony’s quiet for once, lying next to Bruce in a post-orgasmic haze. Bruce is feeling pretty good himself, well fucked and lazy.

 

“So, when did you realize you were in love with me?” Tony asks, mischief in his voice.

 

Bruce rolls his head to look at him. “How do you know I’m in love with you?”

 

“Circumstantial evidence,” Tony replies airily. “I’m a smart guy. I can connect the dots. So? When did you know?”

 

Bruce smiles. “I’m not sure. It just kind of snuck up on me.”

 

“Don’t you want to know when I figured it out?” Tony asks.

 

Bruce chuckles. “Probably about the same time you built me a particle accelerator.”

 

Tony makes a noise of agreement. “I knew you were a genius.”

 

“Takes one to know one,” Bruce says, and kisses him again.

 

He’s as content as he can ever remember being, and that’s evidence enough of what Tony means to him.

 

**Tony**

 

Technically, Natasha isn’t the first person to know about Tony’s intimate relationship with one Bruce Banner, not that Tony will ever tell Natasha that.

 

Granted, Natasha is the first _Avenger_ to know, but Tony had told Pepper himself, once it had been clear that what he’d been doing with Bruce was more than fucking around. Tony might not be romantically involved with Pepper anymore, but she’s still one of his closest friends, and he’s pretty sure she’d disembowel him if she were the last to find out about anything significant ever again.

 

No, the last person to know is Fury, a fact of which Tony is very proud. In fact, Fury probably never would have found out if Tony hadn’t spilled the beans.

 

And, as Tony realizes later, that speaks to the loyalty of his teammates, who hadn’t mentioned the change in relationship status to the director.

 

“Why am I hearing reports of the Hulk uprooting trees in the Rocky Mountain National Park?” Fury thunders in a meeting with the entire team.

 

Bruce hunches his shoulders and ducks his head, as though to dodge Fury’s—well, _fury_.

 

And that just won’t stand, as far as Tony’s concerned.

 

“Are you kidding me?” Tony demands, drawing Fury’s attention. “I worked it out with the park service beforehand, and we marked the trees for the Hulk to uproot. He had a great time figuring out which ones to smash.”

 

Fury’s eye narrows. “And you didn’t see fit to tell me or SHIELD what you were up to?”

 

“It was between me and my boyfriend,” Tony snaps. “I’m doing everything I can to keep him on an even keel. I would think you’d be on board with that.”

 

Bruce sends Tony an alarmed look, and Tony replays what he’d just said, realizing he’d just outed them to Fury—the same guy who built a cell for Bruce that could be dropped from 30,000 feet. Who knew what he’d do with the information that Iron Man is dating the Hulk?

 

Which is why they hadn’t told SHIELD, to be perfectly honest. Neither of them wants to give the bad guys another reason to target them, or give SHIELD a reason to try and keep them apart. Tony just handed Fury a weapon, and he kicks himself for speaking before he thought.

 

“Excuse me?” Fury says softly, and Tony knows his temper is reaching dangerous levels. “How long has this been going on?”

 

Tony remains stubbornly silent, because even _he_ knows when not to open his mouth. Sometimes.

 

“Long enough to know that the relationship is a stable one,” Natasha says in an even tone. She almost sounds bored.

 

Fury turns his glare on her. “And you didn’t tell me?”

 

“I didn’t deem it of sufficient interest, and it has no bearing on how well they operate in the field,” Natasha replies.

 

Bruce shoulders are starting to come down from around his ears.

 

“We all knew,” Steve says in the same offhand manner. “We’ve known for months now. It’s no big deal.”

 

That easy acceptance startles Tony, especially knowing how freaked out Steve had been to catch them in the act, but Bruce relaxes even further, and he realizes that the team’s support is helping Bruce chill about their relationship being completely out in the open.

 

“No one knew about it, because no one noticed, other than us,” Clint adds. “That should tell you something.”

 

Fury glares at all of them impartially now. “Am I the last person to know?”

 

Tony smirks. “Sure seems that way, so obviously, there’s no problem here.”

 

Fury sighs deeply. “Next time, _tell me_ before you take the Hulk out to play, even if you do check with the park service first. I don’t like being the last to know when I have to deal with the cleanup.”

 

Everyone around the table keeps a straight face, and Tony can only imagine the effort it takes.

 

When they’re dismissed, Bruce falls into step next to Tony. “Really?” he asks.

 

“Deal still holds,” Tony replies. “But Fury was going to find out sooner or later.”

 

“You got a great deal of satisfaction out of that,” Bruce accuses.

 

Tony shrugs. “We kept a secret from _the_ spy. We should be proud.”

 

Bruce lets out a reluctant chuckle. “I’d be prouder if we’d managed to keep it quiet a little longer.”

 

Tony shrugs. “It had to come out eventually. It’s better that it be on our terms.”

 

Bruce glares at him. “ _Our_ terms?”

 

Tony winces. “Okay, fine. My terms. I’ll make it up to you.”

 

A smile curls Bruce’s lips. “Oh? What will you do?”

 

“Anything you want,” Tony promises recklessly.

 

Bruce gets a wicked gleam in his eyes. “Oh? Anything?”

 

“Anything.”

 

Bruce grins. “It’s going to take all night.”

 

And that, Tony thinks, is why it’s all kinds of fun dating a genius.


End file.
